Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-07-06

az 'e'9NoChei- ~ -NAOn th'ilCBGGu Tue san
Francisco Chronicle to print, if it dared"
the prices charged to parents for school |
books under the old and under the new !
systems. After more than week of |
paralysis the Chronicle replies, but in a |
manner that excites commiseration. Driven |
to its trenches, our contemporary has no |
answer except the dogmatic one-having
said the horse was sixteen feet in hight, he |
must be of that stature, land We repeat |
it,"
Says the Chronicle:
The amendment to the Constitution relative |
20 the State providing text books for the Dubic
schools was carried solely upon the idea that |
the State would provide these books for the use |
OF pubhc-school pupils without charge to them |
or their parents.
Which is simply, fatty, untrue, be- |
sides being an insult 70 the intelligence
Of the voters of the State. No PROPOSE
ton was ever submitted more plainly or
more clearly than this, that the State shall
print and furnish to parents school text
books at the cost price. No other propo-
sition was before the people concerning
textbooks, and there was no delusion or
misunderstanding in the case. We quote
further:
We say further that after more than ono an
prcprtation had been made by the Legislature.
v. L. Weleker, State Superintendent, finding
that the estimates of j. j. Ayers state Printer
were far below the cost OF the books, fixed an
arbitrary price for such books and that this
price was and is far below the actual cost of
their manufacture.
In support of which allegation no proof
whatever is offered. In previous article
the Gronjcie referred to this charge, and
printed the estimate alongside the price
charged, to maintain its claim. But as
Mr. Ayers has shown, his estimate was on
smaller books, by more than one-third, and
on binding of a lower grade The fact is
that, when the increase in the size of the
book IS taken into account, and the pro-
portion of cost per page is calculated, the
State school books are actually being
issued bctotc the ayers estimate II is abso
intely untrue that the State is selling her
school books at less than the cost of their
manufacture, and the Chronicle knows this
to be so.
and that the consequence Of this must be
mat The parents of the puOils pay one portion
OF the cost of the books and the remainder Is
paid by general taxation"
It is not true that the parents nav
one portion OF the cost and that the re-
mainder is paid by general taxation.
There is not single fact upon which to
hang the charge of the Chronicle. An I'M
lawful and inexcusable diversion of a small
part of the book fund has benefited a gen
eral State fund which the people maintain
10y direct taxation. This is the only pre-
text possible to be availed of 10 fortify the
dogulatic statement OF our contemporatv
When the REcoED-UNIos states that the de-
Iecncy is due to the act of the sta e Printer In
oiycrtlng money from the book fund TO the
printing Office fund We are not concerned
either to admit or deny ii. Where the leak oc-
earred or who was gully of dereliction of duty
5 not under discussion"
Il does make difference whether the
diversion is to be accounted shortage and
charge against the school book fund so as
TO make an apparent increase in the cost
Of production. The Chronicles plea of
irreleyancy is i'll put The money is not
gone from the State; it has been used out
of the book fund for other State work. The
long and short of il is, that the State print
ing fund having benefited $4,000 at the
expense of the book fund, must pay II
back.
We have never attempted to make a com.
parison between the prices that were paid for
textbooks under the contract system and the
cost Of the production Of similar books by the
State"
But the commonest honesty in debate
demands such comparative exhibit shall
be made by assailants Of the system.
What We did sag was this That if advsn.
tage OF competition were properly nsed booEs
could be bought more cheapiy than the Stale
could make them. There are numerous esfab
lishmei,ts which make textbooks and II The
State would deal with them at first hand in
stead OF through middle-men and would en-
courage these firms 10 bid against each other
re BOOKS could be bought more eheaply than
the state could manufacture them. This can
not be eontr0verted .
Bat it can be and successfully. The
State through the counties did fer years
attempt to keep open the doors of compe-
t'tion The State was for quarter of
century racked with this so-called "free
competition her Boards of Education we're
9 'rupted, her Legislatures tempered with
teachers bought and sold, paid lobbies
maintained, and local politics in every
school district took color from the gold of
book ring agents. All this was so notori-
onsly true that it is needless to mere than
T erto it.
On the 10Th Of October. 1884, in the
midst OF the debate on the school book
eoRs.itutionai amendment, and which the
CG.r4liele charges the people did not I'M
derStand. though its words were few, clear
and unansbiguous, the RBcoRD-UEIos
published the PROOF that there was no such
thing az open competition in selecting
I-astern school books. On that
das il printed the compact made between